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Faulty car
my daughter 20 bought her first car a Vauxhall corsa 2022 from cinch with car finance on 8 /April /2026 It broke down on the motorway last week - the AA who rescued her said it had no oil at all in the engine- but after refilling checked the car and said there were cracks in the timing belt. And she should only drive it home or the garage.
The mechanic fixed the belt said there is also a gearbox issue and the car should last only a year or so. One tyre is also completely bald.
I will see him and ask more details when we pick it up tomorrow- but my question is could my daughter give the car back and get her money back? Or get Cinch to cover the cost of the repairs?
She will be paying it off for four years- and is devastated. She bought a newish car so that it would be reliable. Any assistance gratefully received!
Comments
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I should say the mileage was high for a 2022 car- around 80,000
0 -
Where did the oil go?
Was it ever checked or topped up since April?
If there was no oil in the engine it would have seized and never started again.
As for the bald tyre, that should've been noticed when it was picked up or delivered.
Time to get the facts about what actually caused the breakdown and the mysterious gearbox fault correctly diagnosed.2 -
Its a used Vauxhall and like a lot of Stellantis products they are junk. Puretech engine?
1 -
She has had the car five months.
How many miles has she covered in that time?
What maintenance has she done while owning the car?
I assume she undertook daily / weekly checks on the basics as she would have been taught to pass her driving test?
What changed to cause the oil level to drop so suddenly since her last weekly check?
What did she do to cause the tyre to suddenly go fully bald between her last visual check and the Mechanic noticing the bald tyre?
0 -
This is a bit unkind, but I agree that there are some gaps in the information provided. Clearly, it does matter how many miles the car has done, and with a petrol/diesel car things like the oil do need to be checked from time to time, although I doubt many people do it every week.
No reliance should be placed on the above! Absolutely none, do you hear?3 -
I check oil, tyres and water fortnightly. Been driving since the 1970s and have learned to my cost that prevention is better than cure. Lesson learned re oil was on a 1969 Triumph Herald, my first car. Tyres get replaced at 3mm/6years, whichever is first.
3 -
I certainly didn't mean to be unkind.
The basis of the question, I think, still stands. If not weekly, then how many times in 5 months was oil, coolant, tyres tread, tyres pressure, washer fluid etc checked?
These are important user checks to keep the car safe.
What servicing fell due in that time and what servicing was undertaken?
4 -
Your post was very fair & gental.
Bald tyre is a serious fault & could lead to a fine. Never mind the risk in a emergancy.
Life in the slow lane2 -
Sadly the service issues with the car are your daughters responsibility, so that is the oi, timing belt and tyre. The gearbox issue maybe something investigate, but without more details it's hard to comment.
1 -
If Google and other AI results are correct the the timing belt change should have been done at 60,000 miles.
They mostly agree the interval is 6 years or 60,000 miles, whichever comes first.
What did Cinch say regarding service history?1
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